<rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#" xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/">
<rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/728">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[Macroeconomic Determinants of Nonperforming Loans in Albanian Banking System]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[The aim of this paper is to study the impact of macroeconomic factors in the amount of nonperforming loans in Albanian banking sectors by using multi regression analysis model from 2003 to 2012. This paper studies the relationship between the amount of non-performing loans and six important macroeconomic factors which are: Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate, inflation rate, money supply (M2) annual growth rate, interest rate, unemployment rate and exchange rate. The multi regression analysis suggests that all variables have a negative impact in the non-performing loan level except inflation and exchanges rates. Moreover the time forecasting analysis predicts an increase in NPL level in Albanian Banking System.    Keywords: Albania, Banking System, Macroeconomics, NPL, Credit risk.]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2499]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/727">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[European Union Integration: The Impact in Albanian Economy and Life]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[Most of the countries in South-East Europe have a political, economic and social goal to access the European Union. The focus of this paper is the process of Albanian accession in EU and its impacts on Albanian economy and life. Theoretical and empirical researches were used to analyze these impacts. The theoretical research analyzes the economic advantages and disadvantages of the increase of foreign direct investment which will result by the integration into EU as well as the political and social impacts. Empirical analysis forecast the trends of Gross Domestic Product and Foreign Direct Investment in Albania by using time series forecasting methods according to two different scenarios. It predicts that GDP will increase by 16.60-23.92% and FDI level in Albania will increase by 29.22-32.12%.    Keywords: Albania, EU integration, FDI]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2443]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/726">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[Impact of Regulatory Reforms on the Banking System in Bosnia and Herzegovina]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[In the last two decades, we have witnessed great changes and growth in the financial sector worldwide. While some countries have experienced economic development, others experienced banking crisis which sometimes lead to costly bank failures and overall disruption in economic activity. The extent to which the financial system can support economic growth depends mostly on the stability and efficiency of the banking sector due to the fact that banks are still the main financial intermediaries.   This comparative study will be conducted by applying a discriminate analysis about the implementation of set of common rules for regulating the banking system (Basel II) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia, as well as preparation of these countries for implementation of Basel III. The main goal of the paper is to analyze how and why the new global financial regulations in the banking sector are applied differently in different countries and regions.   These questions are answered by analyzing the implementation of Basel II, results of appliance of this rules as well as expectations from Basel III.   Keywords: Banking system, Economic development, Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, Risk, Implementation, EU, Standards. ]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2454]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/725">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[The Casual Effect of Education Level on Wages: Albanian Case]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[Education is a very important investment decision motivated by the fact that it will yield ongoing long term income. This income otherwise is called wage, which refers to regular payment gained by working. There are a lot of factors that define the wage level such as: job position, employment policies of the country etc., but does the education level have significant impact on the wage or wage growth?   This paper makes a methodological, qualitative analyze by using the empirical results generated by the survey “The effect of education level on wages: Albanian case”, provided to a random sample of employed people in Albania. By observing the data on the education level and the job satisfaction with regard to wage level, this survey aims to show if the overall wage growth changes proportionally as the education level changes and also if the more educated people have higher working opportunities.   The results of the survey reflect that the education level has a significant effect on the job position, especially in the specific working areas, so the working experience and the wage level grow monotonically with the education level.   Keywords: education level, wage growth, working experience, specific working areas, welfare.]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2500]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/724">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[The Importance of Public Investments in Regional Development: An Example of Gap in Turkey]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[Developed countries can perform better growth with their economic possibilities and they can minimize the imbalances among regions. However, this is not applied to developing and least developed countries. The most important problem of developing countries such as Turkey is insufficiency of sustainable development. Thus, this has led to imbalanced development between regions.    Today, one of the major problems of Turkey is inter-regional inequalities in developments. These inequalities also bring social, political and cultural problems with them. South-eastern Anatolia Project (GAP) aimed a multi-sector, integrated and sustainable and regional development. It is aimed to raise the income levels and living standards of people in the region with the help of GAP, and as a result to abolish the inequalities between this region and other regions. Development program of the project covers irrigation, hydropower, energy, agriculture, rural and urban infrastructure, forestry, and education and health sectors. GAP is funded by public investments and its total cost is 32 billion U.S. dollars.     In this study, the effect of public investment on regional development will be discussed by the light of Turkey South-eastern Anatolia Project (GAP). The analysis of macroeconomic data (economic growth, unemployment, export etc.) will help us to observe the contribution of the GAP to the reconstruction of this region and the economy of Turkey in this context.    Keywords: Public Investment, Regional Development, South-eastern Anatolia Project (GAP)]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2484]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/723">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[Political Ideologies and their Influence on the Political Behavior of the University Students in Albania]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[This research paper analyzes the effect of political ideology on political and voting behavior. It is obvious that political believes and ideologies have an impact on voting behavior, however the extension of its effects is open to discussion. This study is based mainly on primary sources and the target group of the study is university students in Albania. The quantitative method is employed in this research in the form of survey questionnaire conducted by the students of higher education (universities) in Albania. The main aim of the study is to find out how much political ideology has influence in political and voting behavior. In this survey students are given an option to identify themselves in a given spectrum of &#039;extreme left&#039; to &#039;extreme right&#039;. In addition, the students are also asked for their affiliation with political ideologies seeing themselves as socialist, social democrat, liberal, nationalist etc. In a country where political party identification is quite evident and this identification is closely linked with the political party leaders, political ideology can be considered as a major influence in voting behavior. According to the data accumulated by the survey, almost half of the total respondent students consider themselves as socialist or social democrats which make combination of the two bigger than liberals, thus showing an obvious inclination towards leftist politics. This might be interpreted as an indicator of the broad influence of the Socialist Party led left wing coalition in power.    Keywords: Political ideology, Voting, Albania, University students, Political behavior.]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2469]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/722">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[Globalization and Albanian Civil Society during the Democratic Transition]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[This paper is part of a research on Albanian society after 1990. This study will attempt to explain and analyses the effect of globalization on the democratization process of Albania. Within this framework this paper will focus mainly on to identify the role of civil society on political behavior in Albanian case. To achieve this goal, the principal aims are to examine how civil society in Albania is involved during the ‘democratic transition’ after the fall of communism and the civil movements&#039; influence on political behavior.In order to analyze the  relationship between the concept of “civil society” and “democratization process” in Albania, it will be studied, among others, from two perspectives: a- in terms of national, political and social context that formed the movement&#039;s goals and strategies in terms of becoming influential on the decision-making process of government through the protests in Albania.    Secondly the features of Albanian civil society will be treated in this paper, based on the debate: “How globalization has influenced the philosophy and organization of civil society? This debate will compare with the cases in the neighboring countries in the Balkan region. In theory, one of the main functions of civil society is to play an important and ‘tutoring’ role in the process of building a democratic society. Analyzing civil society in Albania requires looking at the way how civil society works and interacts with various financial, human and technical factors.    This paper will be based on qualitative method. For analytic purposes, the discussion is organized in two main parts. The first part, examines theoretical part and focusing on the key issues that relate and link the government and NGOs in decision making process and political behavior of Albanian civil society. The second part examines existing Albanian civil society and its outcomes during the &#039;democratic transition&#039; in reference with the first theoretical part. The paper will conclude with predicting the future of civil society in Albania.    Keywords: Globalization, Civil Society, Protest, Political behavior, Albania.]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2460]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/721">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[Role of the Media in Shaping Political and Electoral Behavior of the Albanian University Students]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[It is commonly accepted that media plays a central role in the functioning of modern democracies. As part of democratic system, media also plays a crucial role in shaping people’s political opinion and behavior. No one can deny its predominant influence in voting behavior. In order to understand its direct effect in voting choice the paper is going to look at Albanian media and its deep involvement and attention to politics. The main objective of this empirical research is to reveal the role of media in changing political behavior among university students in Albania. The study critically analyses the direct impact of mainstream media of this target group during June 2013 General Elections in Albania. The research is performed in survey format. This is still an ongoing project; however a sample of 494 respondents was generated from the contribution of both private and public university students belonging to different departments. To make it clearer and at the same time to extend the analysis, among others, three points will be taken into consideration.     Firstly, the study identifies the most popular and accessible mediums for political information among Albanian university students. Secondly, it sheds a light on the influence of specific mediums such as television, internet and radio in shaping political beliefs and preferences. Thirdly, this quantitative research elaborates the credibility of mass media as one of the most powerful transmitter of political events in Albania. The observation of voting behavior allows us to realize whether citizens are influenced by family affiliation, personal predispositions or are they guided by the impact of media. Overall, as expected, results explore that media plays a significant role in voting choices among Albanian students. Similarly, in this age of technology, internet and television are being found as the two predominant sources for obtaining political information in Albania. However, it is quite evident that the persistent challenge for Albanian media is the improvement of its image and reputation as a reliable and impartial medium for providing political information.    Keywords:Political Behavior, Mass Media, Voting Behavior, Political Knowledge, University Students, Albania]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2459]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/720">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[Waste Disposal and Recycling in Albania: Case of Lezha Town]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[Albania as a developing country has many social and economic problems and waste is one of them. In every corner of Albania there are waste thrown out on the street and lands. This is mainly caused by the negligence of both people and the central and local governments. Communism period has made people as such and they were not aware of protecting the environment. The second reason for having a waste problem in Albania is that there is a lack of infrastructure and equipment where to dispose or recycle the waste. As one of the main goals of Albania is to join the EU there are criteria to fulfill. Therefore, the governments since 2002 have been adopting the EU legislation about recycling of the waste. Only after 2009 some example of application have been seen and the governments are concerning more on this issue because of the EU&#039;s strong advise for putting those legislation into practice. Currently there are 60 recycling companies operating and two new landfills are created to dispose of waste. In Albania the waste can be managed only by landfill and recycling. Recently the government passed a law to permit importing waste in Albania, but a referendum about this law will be held as a final decision. The town of Lezha is the first successful example where the waste is collected in different containers and recycled. In this paper Lezha example will be evaluated by employing primary data taken from Lezha municipality, statistics of INSTAT of Albania and the Ministry of Environment of Albania.  The example of Lezha must be adopted by all other municipalities in order to have a clean Albania. Recycling and successful waste management are among the key indicators of advancement, and these two will contribute to development of the economy and living standards in Albania.  Keywords: Waste management, Recycling, EU legislation, Landfill, Lezha, Albania]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2458]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description><rdf:Description rdf:about="https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/items/show/719">
    <dcterms:title><![CDATA[The Nexus between Electricity Generation/Supply and Manufacturing Sector Performance in Nigeria (1975-2011).]]></dcterms:title>
    <dcterms:abstract><![CDATA[This paper investigates the relationship between electricity generation/supply and manufacturing sector performance in Nigeria using time series data from 1975-2011. The variables utilized to test this relationship are index of manufacturing production, electricity generation, government capital expenditure, inflation rate, exchange rate and capacity utilization. By employing series of tests such as correlation techniques, the result obtained infer that, there exist a positive nexus between index of manufacturing production and electricity generation, government capital expenditure, inflation rate, exchange rate but negative relationship between capacity utilization. The Granger causality test shows unidirectional causal relationship that runs from capacity utilization to index of manufacturing production. Similarly, there is unidirectional causal nexus that occurs from electricity generation to index of manufacturing production. For government capital expenditure and index of manufacturing production it was observed that, unidirectional relationship runs from index of manufacturing production to government capital expenditure without feedback effect. The Johansen co-integration test shows three co-integration equations at five percent level for the trace statistics but no co-integration at five and one percent level for the Max-Eigen test. The implication of this study is that, electricity supply is a key determinant of output growth in the manufacturing sector; therefore the power sector should be given more attention for the growth of the nation economy.    Keywords: electricity generation, manufacturing performance, Nigeria.]]></dcterms:abstract>
    <dcterms:publisher><![CDATA[International Burch University]]></dcterms:publisher>
    <dcterms:date><![CDATA[2014-04-24]]></dcterms:date>
    <dcterms:extent><![CDATA[2494]]></dcterms:extent>
    <dcterms:identifier><![CDATA[ISSN 2303-4564     ]]></dcterms:identifier>
</rdf:Description></rdf:RDF>